Lost Autumn by Mary-Rose MacColl is the perfect fall read if you enjoy historical fiction with an English royals vibe—very much Downton Abbey goes to Australia. I found this book sumptuous and immersive and interesting enough to keep me reading—which is quite the feat these days! It seems like all I want to do is re-read romance novels and watch Pride & Prejudice (the Keira Knightley version, thank you.)
Falloween Reading Guide: Day Six
Who wouldn’t love a spooky book of stories for middle grade readers? My girls have been enjoying Scary Stories for Young Foxes by Christian McKay Heidicker and we think you would, too.
Falloween Reading Guide: Day Five
I had to shoutout this fabulous new translation of Beowulf by Maria Dahvana Headley in my August Favorites but I couldn’t resist adding this as my day five pick for the Falloween Reading Guide. If you can get the audiobook version, it’s four hours of gravelly consonants and resonant “bro”s that you will not regret. For us native English speakers, this is the first great work of literature in the oldest iteration of our language and feeling it updated is like smooth whiskey on the tongue.
Falloween Reading Guide: Day Four
This fourth reading recommendation is coming courtesy of the teenager, who LOVED this series—Truly Devious, The Vanishing Stair, and The Hand on the Wall by Maureen Johnson. If you love back-to-school antics, cozy mysteries, woodsy New England settings, and perniciously curious teenagers, this series is perfect for you.
Falloween Reading Guide: Day Three
Did anyone else recently re-organize thanks to a particular new show on Netflix? Nah? Just me? Martha Stewart Organizing: The Manual for Bringing Order to Your Life, Home & Routines is a delicious treat. Even if some of the advice can be a bit much (does anyone’s house look like this all the time?) I still enjoyed some of the tips and tricks. Plus, Martha lays out a schedule month by month so you don’t blink and miss all the fun stuff that each season can offer—for fall that means apple picking, pumpkin carving, and some delicious baking.
Fall Reading Guide: Day Two
The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune
This jewel of a book is so cozy and welcoming and heartfelt that I actually reread the final four chapters over again, just to savor it. If you like magical realism with a touch of whimsy, may I suggest you get to know all the delightful characters here—but especially Lucy, who was my favorite.